Adjustable rubbish chute

ABSTRACT

A rubbish disposal device that includes a chute connected to a lid of a rubbish container, the lower end of the chute being doubled over a flange bent downwardly around the perimeter of an opening in the lid, the chute including an inclined portion having a telescoping section for length adjustment hinged at an overlapping joint to a horizontal upper portion adapted to extend through an opening in a wall.

United States Patent Inventor George 0. Mullens 18202 Coltman Ave., Gardena, Calif. 90247 App]. No. 752,372 Filed Aug. 13, 1968 Patented Jan. 12, 1971 ADJUSTABLE RUBBISH Cl-IUTE 9 Claims, 9 Drawing Figs.

U.S. C1 193/33, 193/34 Int. Cl. B65g 11/14 Field ol'Search 193/5, 6, 7, 8,16, 33, 34,17

[56] References Cited UNlTED STATES PATENTS 961,601 6/1910 Freeman 193/16 3,171,447 3/1965 Fowler et a1. 193/34 3,261,441 7/1966 Mullens 193/33 2,802,434 8/1957 Dowse 193/34 Primary ExaminerAndres H. Nielsen Attorney-Causewitz & Carr PATENTED JAN12|97| 35541345 SHEET 2 0F 2 INVENTOR 660266 0 MULLE/VS ADJUSTABLE RUBBISH CHUTE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention pertains to a rubbish disposal arrangement and, in particular, to a rubbish chute device for extending through an opening in wall to a rubbish container.

2. The Prior Art.

It has been recognized that many advantages can be realized by providing a rubbish disposal chute arrangement whereby rubbish may be discarded from within a dwelling or other building directly into a rubbish can adjacent the exterior wall. Such a device is shown in US. Pat. No. 3,261,441, in which the rubbish chute has an upper horizontal section extending through an opening in the wall and connecting to an inclined lower portion that extends downwardly to a lid that is adapted to fit on a rubbish containen'A spring-loaded door at the entrance to the chute seals off the interior of the chute and the contents of the rubbish container, yet is readily deflected when access to the chute is needed. Thus, the chute is convenient in that repeated trips to empty wastebaskets are avoided, while at the same time normally being closed off and avoiding any odors from the rubbish that has been discarded. The chute illustrated in this patent is in two sections that are hinged together so that the portion exteriorly of the wall may be pivoted relative to the part extending through the wall about a horizontal transverse axis. This allows the lid to be raised so that the rubbish can may be removed and emptied.

While the concept of this patent represented a substantial improvement over anything in the prior art, it still left unanswered certain troublesome problems. One centered around the connection of the chute to the lid. The conventional rubbish container lid is slightly domed and made of relatively thin-gauge material. In orderto impart rigidity to it, it is provided with spaced depressedportions which, in effect, define ribs in the material of the lid. Therefore, to secure the chute to the lid requires an attachment at a location where the lid is of curved configuration, with an irregular surface resulting from the ribs formed in it. Moreover, the chute is inclined at an acute angle to the horizontal at the location where the connection to the lid is to be made. A satisfactory attachment of the chute to the lid requires a tight connection to seal ofi the contents of the container, which is particularly difficult to achieve under these circumstances. Moreover, sharp edges should be avoided to minimize the possibility of injury to those handling the lid device. Further, the connection should not result in surfaces that will tend to catch the material being transmitted by the chute.

Another difficulty is that rubbish containers are not all of the same height, nor is the position of the outer supporting surface for the rubbish can always at the same level relative to where it is possible to cut an opening through a wall for receiving the chute. A fixed length chute, therefore, could not be utilized under certain conditions.

A still further problem centered around the hinged joint, where the two duct sections were pivotally connected together; When the edges of the ends of the ducts merely were intended to abut, it becamealmost impossible to obtain a sealed joint and to avoid some gapping at the adjacent duct sectionends.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes all the above-noted difficulties. For the attachment of the lower end of the chute to the lid, an opening is formed in the center of the lid, around which is bent 21 depending flange. The opening and flange are made complementary to the chute at its normal angle of inclination. The bottom end of the chute is extended through the opening and then bent over the flange so that it is doubled over, becoming U-shaped in cross section, with the flange in between the doubled-over portions of the bottom end of the chute. A suitable fastening means then secures the chute to the flange at the doubled-over section. This provides a sealed connection of neat appearance, despite the curvature of the lid, its irregularities in contour, any tolerances in the lid construction and the angularity of the chute to the surface of the lid. Sharp edges are avoided, and there are no surfaces present which may serve to catch the material being dropped through the chute.

In addition, the lower inclined portion of the chute is in two sections, which are telescoped together. This allows the length of the chute to be varied so that the height of the lid can be adjusted to suit prevailing conditions relative to the level of the upper edge of the rubbish container. The length adjustment is maintained by screws that extend through the overlapped telescoping sections.

At the hinged joint where the upper and lower chute sections are joined, again a telescoping arrangement is provided as the lower section slightly overlaps the upper part. This assures that after the chute is pivoted to its normal lower position there will be a sealed joint between the upper and lower chute sections as the overlapping portions prevent the existence of any gaps.

An object of this invention is to provide an improved rubbish disposal chute device.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved yet simplified means of connecting a downwardly extending rubbish chute to a rubbish container lid.

A further object of this invention is to provide a rubbish disposal chute of variable length dimension with means for locking the adjustment after'it has been obtained.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a rubbish chute having one section pivotal relative to the other, in which the joint at the pivotal connection is sealed when the chute is in the normal lowered position.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a rubbish chute device of neat appearance and which does not present any sharp edges which might cause injury.

These and other objects will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the rubbish chute device attached to a lid for a rubbish container;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the assembled and installed rubbish chute arrangement;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view of the rubbish chute and a portion of the container lid;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of the upper surface of the central portion of the lid after an opening has been formed in it and before association with the lower end of the chute;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the central portion of the lid after the flangeshave been provided so that it is. prepared. for engagement with the lower end of the chute;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the lower endof the chute as viewed from below, with that end of the.chute prepared for attachment to the lid;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing the manner in which the lower end of the chute is bent around one of the inclined flanges;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 illustrating the bending of the bottom end of the chute around the other inclined flange; and

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 8, illustrating the attachment of the bottom of the chute to one of the vertical lid flanges.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The arrangement of this invention includes a hingedchute 10, the lower end of which connects to a lid 11 of a rubbish container 12. The chute assembly 10 includes a fixed upper horizontal portion 13 from which a section 14 extends to the rubbish lid' 11. The section 14 is in a vertical plane, yet

inclined downwardly at an acute angle to the lid 11. The chute sections 13 and 14 are rectangular in cross section.

When the device is installed for use, the upper chute section 13 extends through an opening in a wall 15, with a flange 16 at the end of the upper chute section 13 in engagement with the inner surface of the wall around the opening. A door 17, hinged at its top to pivot inwardly and upwardly, normally closes off the upper end of the chute. There is ready access to the chute interior, however, merely by pushing inwardly on the door 17, allowing rubbish to be directed through the chute into the container 12. After the rubbish has been discarded, the door 17 automatically closes to seal off the contents of the container 12 from the interior of the dwelling or other building having the wall 15.

In order that the rubbish container 12 may be removed and emptied, a pivotal connection is provided between the upper horizontal section 13 and the inclined portion 14 of the chute assembly 10. This allows the lower chute section to be raised, as shown in phantom in FIG. 2, so that the rubbish container 12 is free to be moved. For this purpose, a horizontal hinge 19 is connected to the short horizontal wall 20 at the upper end of the chute section 14, and to the upper surface 21 of the chute section 13. The axis of the hinge 19 is at the outer edge of the upper portion of the chute assembly. The wall 20 is recessed, however, so that the hinge axis is inwardly of the side edges 22 of the portion 14 of the chute assembly. When the device is in the lowered position, therefore, the edges 22 overlap the sides of the section 13 of the chute. Similarly, the doubled-over bottom edge 23 of the opening in the chute section 14 overlaps the lower surface of the upper chute portion 13.

This telescoping effect at the connection between the two portions of the chute assures that an appropriate seal is provided between these relatively movable sections. If the edges merely were intended to abut, there would be great difflculty in providing a sealed joint within normal construction tolerances. Gaps invariably would occur. As an added advantage, with the chute section 13 fitting into the upper end of the section 14, there are no edges presented to the rubbish that is being transmitted through the chute assembly 10. As a result, nothing will catch within the chute as the rubbish is pushed through the entrance portion 13 and into the downwardly inclined part 14.

In order to compensate for differences in rubbish can height, for differences in the level of the surface 15 exteriorly of the wall 15 upon which the rubbish container rests, or for variations in the location where the opening through the wall can be made, as well as for manufacturing and installation tolerances, the chute assembly 10 is made adjustable in length. By this feature, it can be assured that the lid 11 will fit securely on the upper edge of the container 12 when the chute is in the lowered position. Thus, the inclined section 14 of the chute assembly 10 includes an upper duct section 26, which receives a lower duct section 27 that extends to the lid 11. The sections 26 and 27 are closely fitted, but allow for relative axial movement as a telescoping joint. Upon installation of the device, the duct sections 26 and 27 are slid relative to each other to impart the proper overall length to the lower portion 14 of the chute. Then, to preserve the setting, a few sheet metal screws 28 may be inserted through the walls of the duct sections 26 and 27.

In order to effect the connection of the duct portion 27 to the lid 11, there first is cut an opening 29 through the central portion of the lid (see FIG. 4). Oblique slots 30 are formed to extend outwardly from the comers of the opening 29. Relatively short flanges of equal width then are provided around the periphery of the opening 29, extending downwardly toward the interior of the rubbish container. The two opposed end flanges 31 and 32 are inclined at an angle equal to the angle of inclination of the duct section 27. As a result, the flange 31 is at an oblique angle to the surface of the lid, while the flange 32 meets the lid at an acute angle. The opposed side flanges 33, however, are identical and bent to a perpendicular attitude. The opening in the lid 11 is dimensioned so that, with the flanges 31, 32 and 33 formed, it is complementary to the inclined chute section 14.

The corners of the lower section 27 are slit back a distance approximately equal to the widths of the flanges 31, 32 and 33. Preferably, triangular cutouts 34 are made at the outer side edges of the bottom chute section 27, as shown in FIG. 6. This end of the chute is inserted into the opening in the lid 11. It is extended through the lid an amount such that the bottom edge 35 of the chute section 27 extends below the bottom edges of the flanges 31, 32 and 33 an amount equal substantially to the width of the flanges. With the duct section 27 positioned in this manner, its bottom portion is then bent so that it becomes doubled over the flanges 31, 32 and 33 (see FIGS. 7, 8 and 9). Thus, the bottom-edge portions of the chute 27 become U-shaped in cross section, with the lid flanges positioned in between the two adjacent surfaces of the doubledover portions. The triangular cutouts 34 assure that the doubled-over portions of the sides of the chute 27 will not project longitudinally beyond the ends of the side flanges 33 of the lid.

An attachment then is formed between the doubled-over end of the duct section 27 and the flanges 31, 32 and 33. This may be accomplished by the use of rivets 36, as in the embodiment illustrated, or by spot-welding or other suitable means.

This form of attachment of the chute to the lid 11 has several important advantages. It provides a sealed connection despite any irregularities and tolerances in the lid 11. The lid usually is a dome-shaped element, which increases the difficulty of obtaining a sealed connection by other means. Normally, there are indentations in the lid defining ribs, such as the ribs 37 illustrated, and the lid is made of very thin-gauge material. Despite the existence of these conditions, however, the connection between the lid 11 and the chute section 27 is very secure and will withstand prolonged periods of service. A sealed connection is assured through the arrangement of this invention whereby the end of the duct is doubled over a flange formed on the lid inside the opening. This holds true is though the ribs 37 may intersect the periphery of the opening 30. Also, when the connection is completed, there are no sharp edges which could cause injury. Moreover, the entrance to the rubbish container 12 is unobstructed as the edge of the doubled-over end section of the duct portion 27 is exteriorly of the chute and not encountered by any of the material being transmitted by the chute. A further advantage lies in the neat appearance afforded by the connection to the lid, with none of the connecting elements being visible from the exterior.

The foregoing detailed description is to be clearly un derstood as given by way of illustration and example only, the spirit and scope of this invention being limited solely by the appended claims.

lclaim:

1. In combination with a container adapted to receive rubbish, a rubbish disposal arrangement comprising:

a lid for said container;

a chute for transmitting rubbish;

said chute having an upper portion having an entrance opening therein; I

said chute having a lower portion extending downwardly from said upper portion;

said lid having an opening and downwardly inclined flange means at the periphery of said opening;

said lower portion of said chute extending through said opening and being substantially complementary to said lid at said opening; and

means securing said lower portion of said chute to said flange means for preventing relative movement of said chute and said lid;

whereby said chute is adapted to transmit rubbish through said entrance opening to said lid and into said container.

2. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said lower portion of said chute is doubled over said flange means so as to overlie the exterior of said flange means.

3. A device as recited in claim 2 in which said securing means includes fasteners extending through said doubled-over portion of said chute and said flange means.

4. A device as recited in claim 2 in which:

said lid is provided with indentations therein for providing 5 reinforcement thereof; said lower portion of said chute is substantially rectangular in cross section, in a vertical plane and is inclined at an acute angle relative to said lid; and said flange means includes two opposed substantially vertical portions and two opposed portions inclined at substantially the same angle as said chute. 5. A device as recited in claim 1 in which: said chute is in two sections;

said sections including overlapping portions providing a telescoping joint for permitting adjustment of the length of said chute; and including means for locking said telescoping joint to maintain an adjustment in the length of said chute. 6. A device as recited in claim 5 in which said locking means includes screws extending through the overlapped portions of said sections at said telescoping joint.

7. A device as recited in claim 1 in which:

said upper portion is generally horizontal; and

including in addition a transverse hinge pivotally interconnecting said lower portion and said upper portion;

said upper and lower portions of said chute including normally overlapping portions adjacent said hinge to thereby provide a sealed joint therebetween.

8. A device as recited in claim 7 in which at said overlapping portions said lower portion extends over the exterior of said upper portion of said chute.

9. A device as recited in claim 8 in which:

said chute is substantially rectangular in cross section;

said transverse hinge being substantially horizontal and connecting an upper edge of said upper portion to an upper edge of said lower portion; and

said lower portion having wall portions projecting beyond said hinge to provide said overlapping portions adjacent said hinge. 

1. In combination with a container adapted to receive rubbish, a rubbish disposal arrangement comprising: a lid for said container; a chute for transmitting rubbish; said chute having an upper portion having an entrance opening therein; said chute having a lower portion extending downwardly from said upper portion; said lid having an opening and downwardly inclined flange means at the periphery of said opening; said lower portion of said chute extending through said opening and being substantially complementary to said lid at said opening; and means securing said lower portion of said chute to said flange means for preventing relative movement of said chute and said lid; whereby said chute is adapted to transmit rubbish through said entrance opening to said lid and into said container.
 2. A device as recited in claim 1 in which said lower portion of said chute is doubled over said flange means so as to overlie the exterior of said flange means.
 3. A device as recited in claim 2 in which said securing means includes fasteners extending through said doubled-over portion of said chute and said flange means.
 4. A device as recited in claim 2 in which: said lid is provided with indentations therein for providing reinforcement thereof; said lower portion of said chute is substantially rectangular in cross section, in a vertical plane and is inclined at an acute angle relative to said lid; and said flange means includes two opposed substantially vertical portions and two opposed portions inclined at substantially the same angle as said chute.
 5. A device as recited in claim 1 in which: said chute is in two sections; said sections including overlapping portions providing a telescoping joint for permitting adjustment of the length of said chute; and including means for locking said telescoping joint to maintain an adjustment in the length of said chute.
 6. A device as recited in claim 5 in which said locking means includes screws extending through the overlapped portions of said sections at said telescoping joint.
 7. A device as recited in claim 1 in which: said upper portion is generally horizontal; and including in addition a transverse hinge pivotally interconnecting said lower portion and said upper portion; said upper and lower portions of said chute including normally overlapping portions adjacent said hinge to thereby provide a sealed joint therebetween.
 8. A device as recited in claim 7 in which at said overlapping portions said lower portion extends over the exterior of said upper portion of said chute.
 9. A device as recited in claim 8 in which: said chute is substantially rectangular in cross section; said transverse hinge being substantially horizontal and connecting an upper edge of said upper portion to an upper edge of said lower portion; and said lower portion having wall portions projecting beyond said hinge to provide said overlapping portions adjacent said hinge. 